No theatrics in this uncompromising sport
Instead of trying to analyse why the Proteas still can’t play spin on the sub-continent or why South Africa might end up with just one team in the Super Rugby play-offs, I spent yesterday familiarising myself with a new sport.
And I was pleasantly impressed by the skill, agility, vision and intensity on display, as well as plenty of courage. Just when you thought I was talking about football, I went and ruined it all by mentioning the “C” word, conspicuous by its absence in the many footballers who have spent the last month in Russia rolling and writhing around on the ground in absolute “agony” after a slight bump to their calf.
The country’s top netballers have gathered for the Spar Nation-
al Championships and there was much to be impressed about. First of all, they are playing on hard concrete courts and players are often knocked off their feet, but despite landing on such an unforgiving surface, back up they invariably get with barely a mention of their aching kneecaps.
And despite being a sport where one is not allowed to run with the ball – in a way the action does come to a grinding halt every time someone catches the ball – the game is played at surprising pace, with possession whizzing around the court. In order to achieve that, the players have to develop great vision – spotting where the space is, placing a high premium on the work done running off the ball.
Although the four quarters of a
netball game are each just 12 minutes long, there is lots of action crammed into those 48 minutes and it is physically demanding with plenty of jostling and strong footwork required.
And to see 67 senior and Under-21 teams flooding Lotto Young Park showed just how popular netball is in South Africa and especially how both black and white communities share an equal passion for the sport which developed
out of basketball in the 1890s.
Netball South Africa (NSA) also made a policy decision this year to play the National Championships on a district level rather than the former provincial basis, greatly increasing the number of teams involved and encouraging local communities to take ownership of the game.
This sort of inclusivity will surely bear fruit in later years in terms of encouraging the depth of players involved at the senior level, but NSA would do well to consider tidying up the format.
A smaller A Division (11 teams started the competition in the premier section this year) would encourage more competitive matches and also reduce the load imposed by a rigorous schedule
that saw some teams play six matches in two days. This must be linked to promotion/relegation for all divisions.
South Africa will be bidding to host the 2023 Netball World Cup and, currently ranked fifth in the world, hopefully our Proteas will be contenders for the title as well.
With women’s sports showing rapid growth in South Africa, it would be fitting for a women’s World Cup to be the next major sporting event hosted by the country.
In the meantime, hopefully netball will continue to inspire and unify communities, especially poor ones, given that netball facilities are not going to cost nearly as much as building football fields or hockey and cricket pitches.